Paleo Diet Explained

If you have ever searched the internet for the best diets, you would find Paleo diet somewhere at the top. Paleo is a short term for Paleolithic which is a pre – historic human development period that existed more than two and a half million years ago. During this period, humans were still learning farming and animal domestication. They only ate what was available around them, and consuming more of these foods actually made them strong and healthy. A Paleo Diet consists of anything which our cavemen used to eat like, grass – fed protein, meats, fish, seeds, nuts, vegetables and fruits to some extent.

Researchers argue that the gap between those pre – historic times and todays is really less for our bodies to adapt to today’s meals and these are causing modern day diseases. In a way, our bodies are still tuned somewhat to the pre- historic diets.

The consumption of these food items are healthy in case of all diets since it contains low sodium, high fiber, potassium and nutrients. The diet does not allow food groups which the pre- historic cavemen could not have due to their non – accessibility. They include, grains, legumes, refined sugars, dairy and salt. Note that these foods are the basic ingredients of most unhealthy food around the world today. The Paleo Diet works absolutely fine for people with Lactose and Gluten Intolerance since it avoids dairy and grains. Here are the must haves in Paleo Diet

Consume saturated fats in high amount like Coconut Oil and Butter

Eat generous amounts of animal protein such as red meat, pork and eggs.

Incorporate high amount of veggies, either cooked or raw

Consume low amounts of fruits and nuts. Only have those low in sugar and high in Omega 3

Do not stress yourself to not skip meals. Eat only when you are hungry and do not over eat.

Sleep at-least 8 hours every night

Do short but intense exercise sessions every day

All the benefits of the Paleo Diet is true, but it is necessarily not the best solution out there. One because, the major source of protein in the diet is from wild fish and grass – fed animals both of which are extremely expensive in the market. Second, there is no measurement of size of portions or calories. You will still gain weight if you eat in excess. Third, the diet is simply not practical because it puts a ban on food and food groups that have become an essential part of our diet now like dairy, legumes and beans. For some societies, giving up on these is not feasible.

Although the diet contains a plethora of benefits, the drawbacks have to be considered too.